COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – On Tuesday morning, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) selected its all-academic team for football.
 
South Dakota Mines was honored in a big way, earning an academic player of the year award and six First Team Academic All-RMAC selections.
 
In a first for the program, Jake Martinelli earned Offensive Academic Player of the Year, a feat that has never been accomplished. In addition, he was also selected to the first team.
 
Henry Dryden, Holden Gilbert, Hunter Newsom, Kaleb Tischler, and Connor Taylor were also selected to the first team.
 
Dryden, Newsom, Tischler, and Taylor have shown their dedication and committment in the classroom, earning the honor for the second consecutive year.
 
Requirements for a selection to the first team are to have completed the previous semester with a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or above and two consecutive semesters at the institution.
 
Martinelli will graduate with a degree in chemical engineering in May, while
Dryden, Gilbert, Newsom, Tischler, and Taylor are also on track to graduate with metallurgical and civil engineering degrees (Gilbert and Newsom). Tischler is majoring in business management in technology, while Taylor will graduate with a degree in electrical engineering.
 
Requirements for a selection to the honor roll are similar to the first team but requires a cumulative GPA of 3.3.
 
The remaining honor roll selections are listed below:
 
Matthew Percival, Sr.
Dylan Lindgren, So.
Brayden Schatz, So.
Gabe Tschetter, Jr.
Ian King, Jr.
Kevin Bruxvoort, OL
Rylan Walter, QB
Griffin Taylor, R-Fr.
Caden Vinduska, Sr.
Hayden Shawcroft, Sr.
JJ Nelson, Sr.
Nathan Kneubuhler, DL
Kellen Weber, DB
Jay Horning, DB
Eli Bowman, DB
Cooper Stevens, OL
Colton Grover, WR
Taylor Hojer, DL
Noah Borchard, DB
Josh Wolfer, WR
Jacob Schwab, LB
Blake Vollbrecht, DB
Emmit Anderson, FB
Adedokun Alarape, DL
Will Lester, LB
Max Wattier, LS
Charlie Johnson, LB
Lane Thomas, DB
Jackson Soulek, DL
 
The full RMAC release is linked here.
 
Fans can find the latest on South Dakota Mines football all year long on X and Instagram (@hardrockerfb), while also following on Facebook at Hardrocker Football. The latest on South Dakota Mines athletics can be found by following us on X at @GoHardrockers, hardrockerathletics on Instagram and Hardrocker Athletics on Facebook.
 
About South Dakota Mines
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 13 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.